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Jan132009

Playing up in high school sports

Filed under Basketball, General, High School Sports, Winter Sports by bob hammerstrom at 4:04 pm

It’s a decision that many athletes would love to have. As a member on Manchester Memorial’s freshman basketball team, my son, Brandon was asked by the JV coach to play on that team as well. Tough choice ha?

Crusaders Brandon Hammerstrom, right, puts up a shot over a Nashua High School South defender during a game at Manchester Memorial.

Crusaders Brandon Hammerstrom, right, puts up a shot over a Nashua High School South defender during a game at Manchester Memorial.

As wonderful as this opportunity sounds, there are good (let’s make that great!) and not-as-good outcomes to playing on either, or both teams. Let’s look at the options:

*If he practices and plays games only on the JV team, he will not bond with his freshman teammates who will move up to play with him next year. He would not get a great deal of playing time overall, either. But, the quality of basketball would be better, and he may learn more from the older players.

*If he stays on the freshman team only, he will not be challenged as much as he would playing up with the JV’s. But, he would be able to play ball with some of his friends from the freshman football team.

*If he plays on both squads, he will miss some of the freshman practices to attend the JV events. This is the road he has chosen, and he’s trying to make the most out of this double-opportunity. The only decision left for him is which team to play on when tournament time rolls around.

Memorial’s JV team has played well this year, and remains to be beaten. Brandon has been playing a few minutes in each half, adding tough defense inside. The Crusaders freshman team hasn’t gelled yet, and struggle to play as a team. Defeated by Trinity and Nashua South, their “street ball” style of play has only worked against weaker teams. Although they are quick and makes plenty of steals, they turn over the ball as many times as they steal it.

As long as Brandon keeps the grades up, he will continue to play with both teams, practicing or playing games six days a week. Let’s hope the freshman team can start working together and have some fun out on the court!

-Bob Hammerstrom

bhammerstrom@nashuatelegraph.com

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Viewing 4 Comments

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    "Playing up" does raise interesting questions. Playing both JV and Freshmen means some other freshman cannot play because the roster slot is gone. Playing JV before mentally or physically ready for the bigger game. Don't know about basketball, but it is certainly true in other sports. And anyone who picks up high school kids can tell a freshman boy... they are tiny! Playing a JV ready Freshman on both JV and the Freshman team might be seen as stacking the Freshman team in lieu of player development... which truely is the point of a Freshman team. And then, inevitably, the freshmen who are ready to play up tend, often, but not always, to be coaches' kids.
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    Good points here. My son, Brandon doesn't look like most freshman. He would easily pass for a college student, with his facial hair and size.

    Although he says he feels more challenge playing with the JV (a few minutes in a game), Brandon doesn't like riding the bench. He's the kind of player that wants to be out there making things happen.

    So, for him, playing up is just a chance to get work with the older players. The JV coach asked him to play on both teams, so he did. He doesn't really get enough playing time in practice or games to improve his skills. Thus, he needs the playing time on the freshman team to improve those.

    -Bob Hammerstrom
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    Where did this picture come from??? Secondly, just because a Freshman is upped to JV or Varsity does not mean that the kid is better than other freshman on the team - it just means the specific team may have a void in that position. Basketball is a team sport and the author is right. The players on the court have to anticipate each others movement. Sometimes its much better if the player is kept with his peers.....
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    Thanks for commenting Kris. I took the photo, as I have for many of the topics of this blog. Memorial freshmen are all done for this season. They were beat in their first playoff game by Keene. There are three freshman, including my son, Brandon who have been brought up to play JV games lately. They practice with them as well.
    I agree with your comment about individual freshmen talent. But, in this team's case, they could play very well without the freshmen. The younger Crusaders players are brought up to work against the older players to develop and challenge them at a higher level. The three that have been "playing up" have also been contributing to the score and rebounds as well.
    -Bob

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